Monthly Archive: December 2017

A lot has happened in 2017. Earlier this year, Barack Obama was president of the United States. Here’s my top ten list of memorable events. Best TV series: The Crown. The celebrity I miss the most: David Letterman. Worst thing that did not happen: Nuclear war with North Korea. Best thing that did happen: Recently learned about 75 boxes of files helpful for my current book project. Best day: Boat trip under sunny skies skippered by Aeneas to Little Fogo Island, Newfoundland, amid Northern Gannett, Atlantic Puffin and Razorbills along with cod hauled up from the deep. Best Book: Hero of the Empire,...

The Globe and Mail must be desperate to find additional revenue for their newly designed newspaper. You know, the paper that’s so small that if it’s mailed, there’s no room for a postage stamp? Their new venture is offering the top floor of the Globe building on Toronto’s King Street East for corporate events, bar mitzvahs and gatherings of that newest group, Readers No More. While the ad say it’s the top floor, the photo shows the roof. I can just imagine the TTC drivers’ Christmas party up there this month trying to keep the barbecue going on a breezy evening after the sun has gone down...

I don’t like Donald Trump. No one I know does. He’s a groper, a blowhard, and a liar. But, you know what? He’s getting things done. They might not be what you or I would want but they are what he said he would do. He’s designated Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, taken two million acres of national monument and turned the land over to strip miners, altered the makeup of the Supreme Court, and may get a tax bill that pays off his oligarch donors. Meanwhile, Ottawa has become Never-Never Land. As one of those who voted for the Justin Trudeau Liberals,...

The much-ballyhooed redesign of the Globe and Mail arrived today and it is disconcerting. In a week when Torstar and Postmedia exchanged papers and killed their young, I wish the redesign had been more uplifting. First off, while top to bottom measures the same, there is one inch less width to the paper. Beyond shrinkage, the other obvious alteration is what has become the Globe’s definition of news. On the front page, there are three stories and one photo with a pointer inside. Of the four topics, two are news, the other two are soft stuff. With an average of three...